Tool for segmenting citrus fruits



y 6, 1941- R. POLK, sR., ETALY 2,240,910

TOOL FOR SEGMENTING CITRUS FRUITS Original Filed April 13, 1958 INVENTOR. T'g/Q W. inf/i Jr, and

BY "1724,44 flu 27., CW v 43615:,

A TTORNEYS' Patented May 6, 1941 UNITED STATES QFHQE TOOL FOR SEGIWENTING CITRUS FRUITS Ralph Polk, Sr., Miami, and Ralph Polk, .lr.,

Haines City, Fla., assignors to The Polk Development Company, Tampa, Fla., a copartnership of Florida 3 Claims.

The present application is a division from our co-pending application Serial No, 201,732, which has matured into Patent No. 2,199,345, April 30, 1940 and relates to that portion of the invention which is illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4 of the aforesaid application.

The object of this invention is to provide a tool of such character that it may be projected between the radially extending divergent portions of a juice-cell-group integument immediately within the apex formed thereby and then so manipulated that a portion of the tool will serve as a holder to prevent outward displacement of the integument while another portion of the tool is swung outwardly in the bonding plane between one of the divergent integument portions and the surface of the juice-cell-group nature bonded thereto, in order to free the juice-cell-group from its nature bond without substantial disruption of the juice cells in the bonding plane.

The accompanying drawing illustrates our invention.

Fig. 1 is a perspective View of our improved tool;

Fig. 2 a transverse section on a larger scale;

Fig. 3 a perspective view, on a smaller scale of our improved tools which may be used simultaneously upon a peeled fruit;

Fig. 4 an enlarged perspective view of a modified tool; and

Fig. 5 an enlarged transverse section of the tool shown in Fig. 4.

In the drawing it) indicates a head from which depends a rod II and a trough-like portion 12 which partially embraces, but is slightly spaced from, rod l l.

Attached to the lower end of rod l l and trough l 2 is a tapered head l3. The head l3, at its larger upper end, preferably, although not necessarily, has a diameter slightly greater than the diameter of trough l2 and an axial extent sufficient to permit a relatively small taper angle, and the axial extent of rod II and trough l2 should somewhat exceed the polar diameter of the fruits tobe acted upon Pivoted in head [0, on an axis at right angles to the axis of rod II and trough l2 and substantially normal to one edge of the trough, is a thin stripper blade 14 which will lie in a plane substantially parallel with the flare of the trough l2 with its rear edge normally nested between that edge of the trough and the rod l l. Blade 14 has a length which brings its tip fairly close ,to the upper end of head 13 and a width, at the tip, which, when the blade is in normal position, will be within the diameter of the upper end of head l3. Blade I4 is provided, at its upper end, with an outwardly projected arm l5, by means of which it may be manipulated to swing about its pivot l 6.

In use, head I3 is projected polarwise through the fruit, i. e., parallel with the apex of a juicecell-gro'up, through the meat of the juice-cellgroup immediately within the apex formed by the two radiating portions of the juice-cell-group integument, the stripper knife 14 at that time lying parallel with the main axis of the tool with its lower end guarded by the upper end of head l3. Projection is continued until the lower end of the stripper blade l4 emerges from the lower end of the fruit, whereupon the stripper blade is swung upon its axisso as to swing the stripper blade outward. Preferably, before the projection of the tool into the fruit, a void is formed in the meat of the segment between the radiating portions of the integument so as to eliminate seeds, if they are present, and permit insertion of the tool without bursting the fruit, although, in case of seedless fruits, there are times when the preliminary formation of the above-mentioned void is not necessary. The maximum diameter of the head is such that the above-mentioned projection through the fruit may be accomplished without a material spreading of the radiating integuments and this dimension will, of course, vary with the fruits to be acted upon, grapefruits permitting the use of larger tools than oranges. The trough-like portion 12 serves to position the tool immediately between the radiating portions of an integument and likewise to position the blade l4 substantially in the plane of bond between a radiating integument and the immediately adjacent face of the juice-cell-group so that, after the lower end of the stripper blade has emerged from the lower part of the fruit and outward swinging of the blade is guided by the lateral resistance of the integument, to travel along the inner face, i. e., the bonded face, of the integument and strip the juice-cell-group therefrom.

The tools have some lateral flexibility, because of their length, and if desired the rod Ii may be omitted, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5.

We have found in practice that a circumferential group of tools of this kind, in number about half the number of segments in fruit, may be simultaneously projected through a peeled fruit without rupturing the natural bond between the flaring integument portions of adjacent integuments, the manipulation of this number of tools resulting in a freeing of approximately half of the juice-cell-groups, at one radial face, and a second projection of the tool group resulting in a freeing of the remaining half of the segments.

We claim as our invention:

1. A tool for rupturing the natural bond between one side of a juice-cell-group of a citrus fruit and the adjacent radial integument, comprising a trough-shaped main stem closed at its lower end by a tapered tip and having a length, above the tip, exceeding the polar dimension of the fruit segment, a thin blade nested in the trough-shaped stem above the tip to be normally guarded by said tip, and a pivotal mounting for said blade on a fixed axis transverse of the axis of the stem whereby, after projection of the stem and guarded blade polarwise through-the apex of the fruit segment without rupture of the radial integuments, the blade may be swung outwardly to rupture the natural bond between the penetrated juice-cell-group and the adherent radial integument.

2. A tool of the character specified in claim 1 wherein a rod lies axially within the trough but spaced therefrom, and the stripper blade in its unprojected position has its inner edge nested between the rod and trough.

3. A tool for rupturing the natural bond between one side of a juice-cell-group of a citrus fruit and the adherent radial integument comprising, a main stem having an enlarged dependent tapered lower end, a dependent stripper blade pivoted at its upper end upon a fixed axis at right angles to the axis of the main stem to swing in a plane tangential to and radially spaced from the axis of the main stem, the free lower end of the lade, when in normal retracted position, lying alongside the shank with its tip lying overan exposed portion of the upper end of the enlarged tapered lower end, said shank and lower end having such transverse and longitudinal dimensions that they may be projected polarwise through the apex of a juice-cell-group of a citrus fruit without rupturing the radiating portions of the integument thereof to position the stripper blade substantially in the plane of bond between one side of a juice-cell-group and its adherent radiating integument, and means by which the stripper blade may be swung upon its fixed pivot.

RALPH POLK, SR. RALPH POLK, JR. 

